My Best Friends' Brother
by KLHF23
Summary: A series of one-shots focusing on various elements of the relationship between Fred Weasley and Hermione Granger as I imagine it.
1. Chapter 1

My Best Friend's Brother

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Just a series of one shots exploring a relationship between my favorite pairing, Fred and Hermione.

And no, I haven't stopped "Finding Yourself", just trying to give myself a little inspiration into the relationship between these two.

Check out my other Fremione stories if you get a chance. :)

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Hermione blew the dust off a particularly filthy book and immediately regretted the decision as she started feeling a familiar tingling in her nose which resulted in something of a sneezing fit. Darn allergies. She loved working at the bookshop, but even with magic she had yet to find a reasonable cure.

"What's the matter, Granger?" a voice called from the doorway. "Using one of our skiving snack boxes to get out of work today?"

Hermione whipped around to see Fred Weasley standing there smirking at her, a realization that made her cringe at the thought of her red, watery eyes and runny nose. He had a knack for catching her in her worst moments.

"Fred. What are you doing here?"

"Well, apparently saving you from dust mites." With a quick flick of his wrist Hermione watched in shock as the back storage room went from covered in a thick layer of grime to sparkling clean in an instant.

"What-" she asked, looking around clearly startled.

"It's a simple cleaning charm. What's the matter with you? You never miss anything and that is definitely not difficult magic." She turned to see him watching her, eyebrows furrowed, as if by studying her the answers would come to him.

"I know," she said with a sigh. "I've not been quite myself lately is all." She placed the book back on the shelf and attempted to gather her thoughts. That was not the whole truth. She had been perfectly fine until Fred Weasley had taken it upon himself to visit her at the shop nearly every day she worked for the past month. Although she would never admit it, his presence was unsettling. She tried to tell herself it was because she was worried of what prank he might be trying to pull, but she knew there was more to it than that.

"And why is that, Granger?"

"I don't know." She could feel the warmth gathering in her cheeks and rushed to busy herself with her work before he noticed. She leaned over her parchment and quill, writing furiously, allowing her hair to fall into her face. This was Ron's older brother. Ginny's older brother. Her best friends' _brother._

"Hey, take it easy. You're going to tear a hole in that parchment, maybe the table. What are you doing anyway?"

"Research for the book I am writing. Why are _you_ here, Fred?"

"Can't a bloke visit a neighboring shop during his break? Isn't that good for neighborly comradery or something?

"Neighborly comradery?" she asked before bursting into laughter. "What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. It seems like a good idea to stay friendly with the other businesses on the street."

"So, been spending loads of time with Madame Malkin and the Gringott's goblins, have you?" she asked. "I had no idea. What is it you all talk about?"

"Hey, it's not my fault if some people's company is preferable to others."

She rolled her eyes. She was used to his playful flirtation by now. "And I suppose George is suffering over at Florean's? A few too many ice creams?"

He grinned. "The Weasley twins are always willing to do whatever it takes for the cause."

"What's your cause then?" she asked.

"I've already told you-"

She glared at him and then rolled her eyes once again. "You really expect me to believe that you are coming here every single day in order to create some kind of friendship club between all the shop owners of Diagon Alley?"

"Well, no. Not between _al_ l the shop owners." He glanced over at her giving her a look so pointedly that she felt like she needed to pause to catch her breath.

"We…we're already friends, Fred," she said, silently chastising herself for stuttering. The last thing she needed was for him to realize the effect his little game was having on her. She turned around and walked across the room, partially trying to process their conversation, but also knowing that her feelings were probably readable by anyone that looked at her face. She had never been great at keeping her facial expressions under control. Besides what would Ron and Ginny say? Or anyone else for that matter? Fred Weasley and Hermione Granger? They certainly weren't the likeliest pair.

"And maybe I don't want to be just friends with you," he muttered, causing her to pause right in the middle of reaching for another book off of the top shelf. Could he be saying what she thought he was saying? Her mind racing, she realized she was still standing with her arm high above her head and must look completely ridiculous. Before she could move, however, she felt him come up behind her, the close proximity of their bodies blurring her thoughts and causing her heart to pound. He reached over her, grabbing the book, and as a result, when we she turned to take it from him, they were only inches apart.

He was taller than her so she found herself staring right into his chest, not daring to meet his eyes yet. That turned out not to help at all as his t-shirt was just tight enough to show off the broad shoulders and ripped muscles that were no doubt a result of years of Quidditch.

"Hermione," he said softly, "I…that is, I…"

Somehow, his hesitation gave her the boost of confidence she needed to look up at him. Meeting his eyes, she saw a yearning there that she had never before seen from Fred Weasley. Not even his latest prank had caused this much focus or intensity.

Swallowing hard, she found her voice. "Fred?"

He reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face before rubbing his hands across his own face in frustration. "Blimey, I'm bad at this," he said, emitting a short laugh.

"Bad at what?"

"This." He leaned down suddenly, closing the short distance between them as he placed one palm on her back and brushed his lips softly against hers.

She was stunned at first, as the realization sunk in that Fred had just kissed her, but, as Hermione nearly always did, she quickly regained her wits. "I don't know," she said with a shy smile, "I thought you were pretty good at it."

It was Fred's turn to be surprised. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, I guess you'll have to show me again. For research purposes, of course."

"Oh, of course. Anything for research." He grinned and leaned down to recapture her lips with his own.

When they finally broke apart, Hermione sighed and laid her head against his chest in a warm embrace.

"So," she said after a moment, "how are we going to break the news to your family?"

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 **I would love to hear from you. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think. To the reviewer that wants me to write about Ron finding out, I will do that soon. :)

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"Grab that wrench over there, please, son," Arthur Weasley said from underneath the hood of his latest muggle Ford Anglia. It had taken years, but he had finally convinced his wife to let him purchase another car and he was doing his best not to use magic to take care of it. Well, that is what he told Mrs. Weasley, anyway.

Fred sorted through his father's collection of muggle tools, searching for the correct one. His father had taught all of his children how to use and identify all of the basics from childhood, insisting he pass down his love for all things muggle down to his offspring. He passed the wrench to his father and grabbed a butterbeer. Taking a long pull of the drink, he leaned against the workbench and sighed loudly.

If his father noticed, he didn't acknowledge it. Instead, he began whistling cheerfully while continuing his work. It was something that had he always loved about his father, but in this particular moment it was driving him crazy.

"Well, let's give her a go," Mr. Weasley said as he closed the hood of the car and wiped his hands looking extremely proud of himself. Fred resisted the urge to laugh as he fully took in his father's appearance. He was wearing one of his Mum's old aprons, a pair of his old goggles from the shop and had various grease smudges on his face and clothing. He just shook his head as he climbed into the passenger seat to accompany his father on a test drive.

"Alright," said Mr. Weasley, giving the steering wheel a reassuring tap before sliding the key into the ignition and waiting for the hum of the engine he hoped would follow. Fred realized he was holding his breath in anticipation as he waited.

"It works!" his father cried, looking at his son in excitement. "Well, I'll be, it really works."

Fred grinned and felt a sense of pride as they pulled out onto into the field next to the Burrow, out of view of his Mum's watchful eye. He had been expecting this, there was no way his father hadn't included magical enhancements when doing his tune up. He couldn't wait to see what was next.

Mr. Weasley looked over at him and with a wink, pressed a button below the steering wheel and the car began to lift slowly off the ground.

"Ah, I knew it. I knew you would have it fly. Gosh, what has it been since the last one? 15 years?"

"Something like that. Isn't it wonderful? Not a word to your mother, of course."

Murmuring in agreement, Fred had to agree that it was, in fact, pretty wonderful. He looked around in amazement as the trees and houses became smaller and smaller. Maybe that is what he and George needed…a flying car.

 _George…_

"So your brother is getting married," his father said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"You're not happy for him?" Fred knew his father wasn't going to push, but it was his opportunity to talk to him about it if he so wanted.

"I'm happy for him," he said, "but things have changed so much already. It's not just that he will be moving out of the flat. He has been taking less and less shifts at the shop and hasn't helped create a new product in months. Hermione says he will settle down after awhile, but I'm not so sure."

"Hermione, huh?" his father said absent-mindedly. "Well, it sounds like she is probably right. Why, when I married your mother, nothing else mattered to me in those early days. Young love," he added with a smile. "Yes, I agree with Hermione. He'll come around. Let him enjoy this new phase of life. He'll be back to causing mischief in no time at all. I'm sure of it."

"Thanks, Dad."

Fred stared out the window, taking in the scenery below. After a long moment of quiet, his father finally spoke again.

"Is something else bothering you, son?"

He sighed. The whole reason he came to see his father was for advice, but now that the opportunity was here he felt unusually shy. He wasn't used to not knowing what to do. He made his own path and never cared what anyone else thought of it. Well, anyone except her.

"It's just-"

"A girl?"

"Well, yeah, but-"

Fred looked up, his eyes wide with surprise. "What? Who? Um, how did you know?" he said finally, albeit a little sheepishly.

"Oh, you don't have seven children and not learn to pick up on a few things. Besides, you have only mentioned her about ten times today. It has been a toss-up between whether you were going to say George or Hermione, really. Figured that meant something." He could see his father looking at him pointedly out of the corner of his eye, but chose, at least for the moment, not to meet his gaze.

"Okay, fine. It's Hermione."

Mr. Weasley gave a small nod. "And what is it about Hermione? Are the two of you dating?"

"No!" Fred said quickly. "No, nothing like that. She, um, she doesn't know anything."

"What is it she doesn't know, son?"

Fred stared at his Dad wishing the car had some sort of ejection seat rather than having to face that question. He had thought his Dad would be slicker than this, skirting around the subject, but still giving the same advice, as they so often did. Evidently, he had other ideas.

"If you are man enough to have these kinds of feelings, you are man enough to talk about them."

"Right," said Fred. "Well, that is, I like her, Dad. A lot."

Mr. Weasley smiled brightly. "I see. And does she know?"

"No, that's the problem. I'm not sure how to tell her. It's not like we have a lot in common. And well, there is the whole Ron thing."

"I was under the impression that she and Ron had agreed to be just friends a long time ago."

"They did, but-"

"Is she seeing someone else?"

"No, but-"

"Then what's the problem?"

"She is Hermione Granger! I am Fred Weasley. It can never work."

"How do you know if you don't try?"

"You think the smartest girl to ever walk the grounds at Hogwarts would be interested in one of the biggest goofs in school history?"

"Isn't that goof now the owner of a successful business franchise?"

"Yeah."

"And doesn't that same goof have to be extremely intelligent in order to make that happen?"

"I suppose so."

"And won't that same goof treat her with the love and respect like the gentleman his parents raised him to be?"

"Of course."

"Well, then, what is the problem?"

His Dad was right. What was the problem? He was a Weasley twin and they didn't act like bumbling buffoons over a girl. He liked her so he would tell her. That was all. And well, if she didn't like him back…bloody hell…

"What if she doesn't…you know," he said.

"It's a chance you have to take, I'm afraid. But this is Hermione we are talking about. Aside from being smart, she is also quite kind."

Fred nodded. She was definitely that. Smart and kind. And beautiful. She was special and he knew it. It was driving him crazy. She was the kind of witch that could be end game and it terrified him.

"Thanks, Dad."

"Anytime, son. Anytime."


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for reading! I would love to hear from you. :)**

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Shot 3

Hermione scanned the room searching for her friends. It was difficult to see in the crowded pub, but she was fairly certain she was the first one to arrive. Great. Just what she wanted tonight was to sit alone amongst a sea of intoxicated witches and wizards. Where were they?

It was Friday night and she had promised Ginny she would meet everyone here to (hopefully) celebrate after her friend's Quidditch match that afternoon. She had to work late so couldn't make the match itself, but Ginny wouldn't take no for answer when it came to the after party. She sighed as she sank into a large booth in the back corner that, fortunately, was at least slightly quieter than the rest of the place. She wanted nothing more than to be home at her flat, drinking a nice cup of tea, curled up with a good book. Yet, here she was, sitting in one of the most popular wizarding pubs in London, completely alone. Besides, she knew _he_ would be here tonight, as well. She groaned, allowing the humiliation wash over for the hundredth time in the past week. What had she been thinking?

She hadn't been thinking, that was the problem. _Not clearly, anyway_ , she thought as her mind shifted back to one week before when she had made a complete fool of herself. It had been Harry's birthday and they had all come together to throw a surprise party for him. Somehow, and she still wasn't completely sure why, she had ended up in charge of fireworks with Fred. Surely, someone else, like, I don't know, maybe George, would have been more qualified, but no, he had insisted on being paired with Angelina on food, so, reluctantly, she had agreed. That was how she ended up in her current predicament.

She and Fred had worked on the fireworks after he closed the shop every evening for weeks. Hermione had dreaded it at first, but after seeing him in his element, she had started to realize how brilliant he could be. Any judgment between them for the way things were in their Hogwarts days dissipated and Hermione found herself looking forward to spending time with him. Alone.

It had been a great party, the weather was beautiful, the plans fell perfectly into place, and to Hermione's chagrin, the drinks flowed a little too easily. When the fireworks went off without a hitch, she was so excited that she threw herself into Fred's arms and before she knew it, they were kissing. Eventually coming to her senses, she mumbled a quick apology and ran to the Burrow, immediately flooing back to her own flat before he could stop her. She hadn't seen or spoken to him since.

She was mortified. She had gotten carried away and as a result had humiliated herself in front of Fred. He was a Weasley twin, for Merlin's sake, and was not likely to let her forget it any time soon. Burying her face in her hands, she groaned.

"Bloody hell!"

"Language, Granger!" said a voice from behind her. Before she could turn to look around, the twins slid into the booth across from her.

She stared at them for a moment, unsure of what to say. It was never fun having your thoughts interrupted by the very person dominating them. Well, not when they were so embarrassing, anyway.

"Wha…what are you doing here?" she asked.

George winked at her. "Meeting Ginny, of course. What else would we be doing, Granger?"

She could feel Fred's eye on her, watching, waiting for who knows what. "Yes, of course. Ginny's match…" She knew she sounded flustered, but how could she not be given the circumstances?

"Were you not expecting us, Granger? We are Ginny's brothers, after all-"

Fred grabbed a few galleons from his wallet and thrust them into his twin's hand. "Why don't you go grab us all some drinks, Georgie?" Fred asked.

George held up his hands in surrender. "Fine. I know where I'm not wanted." Hermione watched as he made his way to the bar, turning his head back to glance at them and smirk with every few steps.

"I'm sorry about him," Fred said. Hermione looked up slowly to see him looking sheepishly back at her.

"It's okay. It's just that I-"

"Hermione! Fred!" a voice shouted from behind them right before a large group descended on their booth. "We won!"

Ginny. The Quidditch match. It had taken her literally only seconds to forget. All she could think about was that he was in front of her.

"Congratulations, Ginny," she said, standing up to give her friend a hug. "I am so sorry I missed it."

"You're here now," her friend said. "Thank you for coming." She reached over and gave her older brother a hug. "Where's George?"

"At the bar," Fred said, gesturing in the direction of his twin.

"Ah, that's where we need to go," Ginny said, grabbing Harry's hand and gesturing to the rest of their group to make their way to the bar. "We'll be back."

"Was that…Lavender Brown?" Fred asked.

Hermione stifled a laugh. "Yes, I think so. I guess she and Ron are seeing each other again."

"I thought you and Ron-"

"What? No!" she said. "I mean, Ron and I are just friends." She could feel the blush heating up her cheeks. Why was she responding to him in this way? She had never even noticed the twins as more than Ron and Ginny's annoying older brothers until now. Now, it was as if there was a magnet propelling her unwittingly towards him.

"Oh." If he was surprised, he didn't show it. Nor did he let on any real feelings on the subject either way.

"Look, Fred," she said, "about the other night...I'm sorry."

Fred looked up sharply. "Sorry? Sorry for what?"

"Well, um…that is, you know…"

"The kiss?"

She could feel the heat rising in her face once again. "Well, yes. I'm sorry that I-"

"You're sorry for the kiss?" he asked. "Well, I'm not. Sorry it ended so soon maybe, but definitely not sorry it happened."

"What?"

"I'm not sorry, Hermione. I wanted it to happen."

"Oh."

"In fact, I'd really like to do it again."

"Oh."

"Can you say anything else? I was hoping we could maybe see each other tomorrow night. I could pick you up at 8?"

"Oh."

"I'm sorry! Yes, 8 is fine." She finally gathered the nerve to look up at him. He was grinning from ear to ear.

"Great," he said. "It's a date."


	4. Chapter 4

I would love to hear from you. Thanks for reading!

* * *

Shot 4

Hermione stood outside their shop, glancing over her shoulder constantly, as if her mere presence near the door was likely to make her a victim of their latest product, or worse, a prank by the twins themselves. Fred and George were merciless when it came to making sure their shop lived up to its reputation as the best joke shop the wizarding world had ever seen and that meant no customer was safe, no matter how long one had been practically family. In fact, that probably made it worse. They were never known to back down just because one of their siblings might be involved.

She peeked in the window again, hoping it was only Verity working, but to her dismay saw the identical forms of the twins behind the counter. She was certain they had spotted her at this point so, finally, taking a big breath, she pushed the door open.

"Ah, well, will you look who it is, Freddie," George said. "Can it be that THE Hermione Granger has decided to grace us with her presence? There must be some mistake."

"No, mistake, Georgie," Fred said. "I see her, too." He slid over the counter in one smooth motion and was immediately at Hermione's side. "Why, Miss Granger, is it? How can we be of service?"

Hermione scowled. "You know full well it is me, Fred Weasley," she said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I just need to grab-"

"The Ten-Second Pimple Vanisher? Yes, we know," he said as his twin nodded in agreement. "You've only been purchasing it for years, why do you still feel the need to act all secretive and embarrassed every time? It's a good product."

"I, that is, I…um…it's for a friend," she said, trying to get around him to grab a jar off the shelf, but he was taller than her and had quite the impressive arm span, effectively blocking her reach.

He raised an eyebrow. "You've been buying cosmetic products for a friend for the past six years? And what friend is this? Can't be Ginny because she has always had freakishly impeccable skin and well, can't be Harry or Ron for obvious reasons."

"Obvious reasons?"

"Well, their skin doesn't look very good, does it? They could really benefit from our Wonder Witch line, but no, they think that is too girly."

"No, Hermione," he said, "that beautiful skin of yours can only be the result of one thing."

"Careful, Fred, I don't want to have to hex you."

"Oi, Georgie, do you hear this? I call the girl beautiful and she threatens me."

"Oh, I heard it, Freddie. Ungrateful is what that is."

"Ugggh. Will you just give me the cream, please?"

"Fine. Have it your way, but you really do look lovely today."

Hermione rolled her eyes and continued searching through her purse for the right coins to pay them. Growing frustrated, she finally a _ccio_ -ed them out and placed them on the counter.

"Eh, this one's on the house," Fred said, tossing the coins back in her purse much to her dismay, "for being such a loyal customer."

"It took me forever to sort out that change," she said. "And besides, I told you it's-"

"Not for you. Yes, got it. Thank your _friend_ for being such a loyal customer then."

"Right. Well, thank you." She gave him a strange look and made her way to the door.

* * *

"What was that with Hermione earlier?" George asked as they were closing up the shop.

Fred smirked. "I don't know what you mean."

"You were _flirting_ with her."

"No, I was not. I just like getting her riled up."

"Because you like her."

"Nooo, because it is fun."

"And it is fun because you like her? This isn't Hogwarts, Freddie. If you like her, tell her."

Fred only shook his head, but later, after George had turned his back, his eyes squinted in confusion as he thought about what his twin had said.

* * *

"Fred, why are you doing that?" Ginny asked.

"Doing what?"

"Pacing back and forth," she said. "It's distracting."

Fred stopped mid-stride and stared at her. They were at the Burrow for Sunday dinner and he had just discovered that Hermione would be joining them. She hadn't been to Sunday dinner in months. And he hadn't seen her since that day in the shop.

George smirked. "I bet I know why." He laughed at the death stare his twin was shooting him.

Ginny glanced back and forth between her brothers. "What is it? Oooh, tell me, please."

"Well, it's like this," George said, ignoring Fred's warning look. "Fred fancies someone."

Ginny's eyes lit up at this information. "What?" she asked. "Is this true?"

Fred groaned. "It's not like that."

"Then, pray tell, Freddie," said George, "what's it like then?"

"Who is it, Fred?" Ginny asked, before recognition settled in. "It's Hermione, isn't it? She is the only one coming tonight other than Phlegm, I'm sorry, _Fleur_."

"I do not fancy anyone. George just got this crazy idea-"

"I did not get a crazy idea. You are the one practically drooling over her at the shop and as soon as you found out she was coming today you started acting mental."

"Because I knew you were going to take the mickey out as soon as she showed up."

"Right, you're just scared of a joke. Got it. That makes way more sense."

"A joke? People's feelings are involved. Since when is that a joke?"

Ginny and George shared a glance before staring at their brother.

"So," Ginny said, "you are worried about Hermione's feelings?"

"Well, yeah," he said. "That's not funny."

She smiled. "I see."

"What do you see?" he asked. "You don't see anything."

"I see that you fancy Hermione," she said.

"I do not fancy Hermione!" he shouted just in time to around and see that she had arrived and was now looking just as mortified as he felt. He stopped to glare at his siblings before storming out of the house and down to the pond not far from the Burrow. He kicked the dirt around angrily a few times before plopping down on the ground with a huge sigh.

This is not how this was supposed to be. It was just a regular Sunday at the Burrow and they were supposed to be having a nice family dinner and now here he was, completely humiliated because George was going around spewing nonsense. He picked up a rock and flung it into the water. He didn't fancy her. Not really. He just thought she was pretty. And clever. And he really liked it when she got all flustered.

Fine, he fancied Hermione.

 _Bloody hell._ He fell back onto the ground and rubbed his face with his hands before sighing loudly, his preoccupation preventing him from hearing the footsteps approaching.

"Is it really as bad as all that?" she asked, causing his head to whip around to face her.

"Hermione!"

"George told me where you'd be," she said, sitting down beside him. "I hope it's okay that I came down."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever."

"It's okay you know. George told me he was just playing around with you."

They sat in silence for a moment, the thoughts whirring through his head.

"He wasn't," he said finally.

"I'm sorry?"

"He wasn't playing around."

"Then why-" she began, but after a fairly pointed look from Fred a look of recognition spread across her face. "Oh."

More silence.

"Why did you say what you said?" she asked softly.

"That I don't fancy you? Well, if George and Ginny were standing there goading you, what would you say?"

She nodded, but once again they fell into silence.

"So, are you going to ask me out or not?"

Fred looked startled. "Whaaa-?"

"Are you going to ask me out?"

"Um, I guess…Hermione do you want to go out with me?"

"Yes, please," she said.

"Well, okay then," he said, his lips forming a smile.

Okay.


End file.
